Marked Increase In Hotspots Spotted In Sumatra, S'pore May Experience Slightly Hazy Conditions

BY Tengku Noor Shamsiah Tengku Abdullah SINGAPORE, Aug 27 (Bernama) -- There has been a marked increase in the number of hotspots in Sumatra today, with the latest number of hotspots being 488, of which 267 are in the Riau province and 66 in South Sumatra. Moderate to dense smoke plumes were also observed to be emanating from some of the hotspots in central Sumatra. In a statement, the National Environment Agency said the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre, hosted by the Meteorological Service Singapore, has advised the interim Asean Coordinating Centre on the activation of Alert Level 2 for Sumatra. NEA has also registered Singapore’s concerns over the sharp increase in hotspot counts with the Indonesians. For the next few days, dry weather conditions are expected to prevail in central and southern Sumatra. The low level winds over Singapore are forecast to blow from the south or southeast and should the winds weaken and blow from the southwest over the next few days, there is a possibility that Singapore could experience slightly hazy conditions. For Tuesday, thunderstorm and showers are expected for Singapore in the late morning and early afternoon. Given the favourable wind conditions, the 24-hr Pollutant Standard Index (PSI) for the next 24 hours is expected to be in the Good band (i.e. ≤50) and the 24-hr PM2.5 is expected to be slightly elevated. As at 7pm today, the 24-hr PSI is 24-32 and the 24-hr PM2.5 is 12-15 µg/m3. The ASMC has a regional warning system for fire and haze situations based on three levels of alert with Alert Level 1 signifying the start of the dry season while Level 2 is activated when 150 hotspots or more are detected on two consecutive days, with dry weather conditions persisting and prevailing winds blowing towards other Asean countries. Alert Level 3 is when there are 250 hotspots or more detected on two consecutive days with dry weather conditions persisting and prevailing winds blowing towards other Asean countries. -- BERNAMA